Richard Burford (1754–1801)
Richard Burford was born in Banbury in 1754. His father was Edward Burford, variously described as a Surgeon, Apothecary, Surgeon & Apothecary, and M.D., and his mother was Anna Rebecca Mapletoft. His grandparents were the mercer Richard Burford (buried 7 March 1752) and Mary (buried 30 December 1760), while his uncle Richard Burford (buried 16 October 1782) was a subscriber to the Radcliffe Infirmary, and left it a legacy of £20.
Richard’s father Edward Burford was married twice. His first marriage took place at Banbury on 24 February 1742 to Vade Stokes, by whom he had three children:
- Edward Burford (baptised at Banbury 5 December 1746, buried there 10 December 1746)
- Francis Burford (baptised at Banbury 20 November 1747, buried there 17 February 1775)
- Vade Burford (baptised at Banbury 27 December 1750).
Mrs Vade Burford seems to have died soon after the birth of her third child as she was buried on 24 December 1750, three days before the christening. Just over a year later Edward Burford married his second wife, Anna Rebecca Mapletoft, who was born in Byefield, Northamptonshire in 1727. They had the following children:
- Edward Burford (baptised on 18 August 1753 at Banbury Church)
- Richard Burford (baptised on 27 July 1754 at Banbury Church)`
- John Burford (baptised on 15 August 1755 at Banbury Church)
- Ann Burford (baptised on 21 December 1756 at Banbury Church)
- Mary Burford (baptised on 9 November 1758 at Banbury Church)
- Rebecca Burford (born 11 November 1759, baptised on 14 November 1759 at Banbury Church)
- Katherine Burford (baptised on 19 February 1762 at Banbury Church)
- Lucy Burford (born on 7 April 1763, baptised on 11 May 1763 at Banbury Church)
- Frances Burford (baptised on 5 February 1770 at Banbury Church).
Richard’s father had been apprenticed to the apothecary Francis Burford of Taunton Dean, who was buried at Banbury on 1 June 1748. It seems likely that Richard would have been apprenticed to his own father.
In order to work in the City of Oxford, since Richard Burford was not a freeman he had to be matriculated by the University of Oxford as a tradesman, and he was duly matriculated as a “Chirurgus” (surgeon) on 13 October 1780. He was elected Surgeon of the Radcliffe Infirmary the next month.
On 7 March 1787 Richard’s father Edward Burford was buried at Banbury.
In August 1787 in Chiswick, Middlesex, Richard Burford Esq married by licence Sarah Costar, a minor of St Mary Magdalen parish in Oxford born in about 1770. She was the daughter of William Costar, who ran a coach service and was then the Master of the Angel Inn in Oxford’s High Street, and the marriage was announced in Jackson's Oxford Journal. They appear to have settled in King Street (now the north–south section of Merton Street) in the parish of St Peter-in-the-East, and moved to St Mary-the-Virgin parish in about 1794. They had the following children:
- Anna Rebecca Burford (baptised at St Peter-in-the East Church on 5 June 1788)
- Harriott Burford (baptised at St Peter-in-the East Church on 15 July 1789,
buried there the same year) - Edward Burford (baptised at St Peter-in-the East Church on 4 July 1790)
- William Costar Burford (baptised at St Peter-in-the East Church on 20 August 1791,
buried there the same year. - Martha Burford (baptised at St Peter-in-the East Church on 5 December 1792)
- Sarah Burford (born on 24 November 1796 and baptised at St Mary-the-Virgin Church on 8 December)
- Richard Burford (born c.1798, died in infancy and buried at St Peter-in-the-East Church on 19 November 1798).
Richard’s mother Anna Rebecca Burford, described as the “relict of Dr [Edward] Burford” was buried at Banbury on 17 February 1798.
Just three years later on 29 March 1801 Richard Burford himself died at the age of about 44, and was buried at St Peter-in-the-East Church.
At the time of the 1841 census Burford’s widow Sarah was living with Martha Cracknell (45) and Jane Shrubb (30), plus four servants. She died in St Clement's parish in Oxford in 1846 at the age of 76 and was buried at Benson.
Jackson’s Oxford Journal reported on 10 July 1847 that Martha Burford, “daughter of the late Richard Burford, Esq. surgeon of this city” married John Fisher of Littlegate at St Lawrence Church, Ramsgate on 5 July 1847.